As the primary source of energy in the solar system, the Sun is the driver for most of the processes in planetary atmospheres. Variability in solar output both directly and indirectly causes variability in atmospheres, but how and how much depends on the particularities of the planet itself.
Since its arrival at the red planet in late 2014, the MAVEN mission has been measuring how Mars’ atmosphere responds to solar variability with the goal of understanding how the climate has changed over the age of the planet. In this MAVEN outreach webinar from Feb. 15, 2017, Dr. Frank Eparvier from the University of Colorado Boulder’s Laboratory for Atmospheric & Space Physics (LASP) and instrument lead for MAVEN’s Extreme Ultraviolet (EUV) monitor discusses the Sun’s influence on the upper atmospheres of Mars and other planets.

The Air On Mars Has A Mysterious Glow. Here's Why

New ultraviolet images from NASA show that Mars' atmosphere lights up at night! What is a nightglow and what causes it?
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New View of Mars Reveals Ghostly Ultraviolet Glow
http://www.seeker.com/mars-nasa-maven-mystery-ultraviolet-atmosphere-nasa-discovery-2053494156.html
"Mars in ultraviolet light is a wondrous place. By night, the dark side of the planet is aglow with nitric oxide. By day, clouds quickly merge together into banks that stretch 1,000 miles long."
Gorgeous Mars 'Nightglow' Spotted by NASA Orbiter
http://www.space.com/34424-mars-nightglow-nasa-maven-orbiter.html
"The first detailed look at Martian "nightglow" has been revealed, thanks to the work of NASA's newest Red Planet orbiter. The space agency's Mars Atmosphere and Volatile Evolution (MAVEN) probe took global pictures of the Red Planet in ultraviolet (UV) light, revealing how winds flow at high altitudes."
MAVEN Mission Overview
https://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/maven/overview/index.html
"The Mars Atmosphere and Volatile EvolutioN (MAVEN) mission is part of NASA's Mars Scout program, funded by NASA Headquarters. Launched in Nov. 2013, the mission will explore the Red Planet's upper atmosphere, ionosphere and interactions with the sun and solar wind."
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The MAVEN Mission and Mars’ Auroras

The NASA MAVEN mission has been studying Mars’ climate evolution since September 2014, particularly the loss of its atmosphere to space due to interactions with the sun and the solar wind. Among its discoveries, MAVEN has observed auroras in unexpected locations in the Martian atmosphere.
In this Nov. 30, 2016 webinar, Dr. Nick Schneider from the University of Colorado Boulder's Laboratory for Atmospheric and Space Physics (LASP) and lead scientist for MAVEN’s Imaging Ultraviolet Spectrograph discusses MAVEN’s discoveries and the different types of auroras on Mars.

MAVEN'S MISSION TO MARS

Mars Atmosphere and Volatile Evolution Mission is a space probe developed by NASA designed to study the Martian atmosphere while orbiting Mars.
Credit: NASA
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LOOK: NASA Captures Martian Nightglow

NASA released the first-ever images of the Red Planet's "nightglow" taken by its MAVEN spacecraft

MAVEN | Ultraviolet Mars Reveals Cloud Formation

Images from MAVEN's Imaging UltraViolet Spectrograph (IUVS) were used to make this movie of rapid cloud formation on Mars on July 9-10, 2016. The ultraviolet colors of the planet have been rendered in false color, to show what we would see with ultraviolet-sensitive eyes.
The movie uses four MAVEN images to show about 7 hours of Mars rotation during this period, and interleaves simulated views that would be seen between the four images. Mars' day is similar to Earth’s, so the movie shows just over a quarter day. The left part of the planet is in morning and the right side in afternoon.
Mars’ prominent volcanoes, topped with white clouds, can be seen moving across the disk. Mars’ tallest volcano, Olympus Mons, appears as a prominent dark region near the top of the images, with a small white cloud at the summit that grows during the day. Olympus Mons appears dark because the volcano rises up above much of the hazy atmosphere which makes the rest of the planet appear lighter.
Three more volcanoes appear in a diagonal row, with their cloud cover merging to span up to a thousand miles by the end of the day.
These images are particularly interesting because they show how rapidly and extensively the clouds topping the volcanoes form in the afternoon. Similar processes occur at Earth, with the flow of winds over mountains creating clouds. Afternoon cloud formation is a common occurrence in the American West, especially during the summer.
(Video credits: NASA/MAVEN/University of Colorado-LASP)

The History of Water on Mars: Implications for Future Exploration

There is ample evidence that Mars once had liquid water on its surface; Mars missions are studying how much water was present and where it went.
In this presentation from September 28, 2016, Dr. Patricia Craig from the Lunar and Planetary Institute, a scientist with the Mars Curiosity rover, discusses the evidence for liquid water on Mars from a historical perspective and how past, present, and future missions to Mars are enabling us to decipher the role that water has played and will play in the future of Mars exploration.

Magnetic Fields, Planets, and Comets

Magnetic fields fill space. The solar wind flows out from the Sun and carries a remnant of the Sun's magnetic field out into interplanetary space. This interplanetary magnetic field interacts with all the objects in the Solar System. Some of these objects (like Earth or Jupiter) have their own permanent, intrinsic planetary-sized magnetic fields. These interactions create magnetospheres—regions of space around an object that are dominated by the object's interaction with the solar wind. Other objects (like Mars, Venus, and comets) lack intrinsic permanent magnetic fields but do have atmospheres which can be ionized. When these ionospheres interact with the solar wind, magnetic fields are induced in the ionospheres and the interactions become induced magnetospheres.
In this presentation from April 27, 2016, Jared Espley, from NASA Goddard's Laboratory for Planetary Magnetospheres, discusses the Martian induced magnetosphere (and how it's even more complicated due to strong crustal magnetic fields). He also discusses how the plasma from Comet Siding Spring temporarily disrupted the Martian magnetosphere when the comet enveloped Mars in 2014.

MAVEN | Martian Atmosphere Loss Explained

Scientists have long suspected the solar wind of stripping the Martian atmosphere into space, a process that may have turned Mars from a blue world early in its history into the red planet that we see today. In 2014, NASA's MAVEN orbiter arrived at Mars and began studying its upper atmosphere.
Now, MAVEN has returned the first-ever measurements of solar wind erosion at Mars, observing ions in the upper atmosphere as they pick up energy from the electric field of the solar wind and escape to space.
(Video credit: NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center)

MAVEN Results: IUVS and detecting aurora on Mars

The MAVEN mission’s IUVS instrument made unprecedented observations of aurora on Mars. Join Dr. Sonal Jain from the Laboratory for Atmospheric and Space Physics (LASP) to discuss the instrument, the results, and their implication about how the solar wind interacts with Mars.

The Earth’s Dynamo: Generating a Global Magnetic Field

Earth’s atmosphere is protected by a global magnetic field. How does our planet generate its magnetic field, and why doesn’t Mars have one? In this presentation from Jan. 27, 2016, Ian Rose from UC Berkeley shares the story of the Earth’s interior, as well as the internal structures of other planets in our solar system, and answers questions from the webinar participants.

MAVEN | Exploring Mars' Climate History

Ancient regions on Mars bear signs of abundant water—such as features resembling valleys and deltas, and minerals that only form in the presence of liquid water. Scientists think that billions of years ago, the atmosphere of Mars was much denser and warm enough to form rivers, lakes, and perhaps even oceans of water. As the planet cooled and lost its global magnetic field, the solar wind and solar storms eroded away to space a significant amount of the planet’s atmosphere, turning Mars into the cold, arid desert we see today. This animation depicts the transition of Mars over billions of years.
The goal of MAVEN is to determine how much of Mars’ atmosphere and water have been lost to space, and how these processes have changed the climate on the Red Planet over its history.
(Video credit: The Lunar and Planetary Institute/MAVEN)
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MAVEN | Exploring Mars' Climate History

Ancient regions on Mars bear signs of abundant water—such as features resembling valleys and deltas, and minerals that only form in the presence of liquid water. Scientists think that billions of years ago, the atmosphere of Mars was much denser and warm enough to form rivers, lakes, and perhaps even oceans of water. As the planet cooled and lost its global magnetic field, the solar wind and solar storms eroded away to space a significant amount of the planet’s atmosphere, turning Mars into the cold, arid desert we see today. This animation depicts the transition of Mars over billions of years.
The goal of MAVEN is to determine how much of Mars’ atmosphere and water have been lost to space, and how these processes have changed the climate on the Red Planet over its history.
(Video credit: The Lunar and Planetary Institute/MAVEN)
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Blowin' in the Wind: First Results from MAVEN

The MAVEN mission has identified the process that appears to have played a key role in the transition of the Martian climate from an early, warm and wet environment that might have supported surface life to the cold, arid planet Mars is today. In this presentation, MAVEN team scientist Jasper Halekas describes the MAVEN results being published about how solar wind and energetic events are transforming Mars.

Exploring Mars: The Inside Story

October 28, 2015 - MAVEN Educator Community of Practice webinar
What do the geological features on Mars’ surface tell us about its interior? How does Mars’ tectonic activity compare with Earth’s history of plate tectonics? How are these related to planetary magnetic fields? Addressing these questions and more is Dr. Walter Kiefer of the Lunar and Planetary Institute, who uses computer modeling of flows inside of planets to study the volcanic structures and the thermal evolution of Mars, the Moon, and Venus.

Sharing Science Online

August 26, 2015 - MAVEN Educator Community of Practice webinar
Tom Mason, an Education and Communications specialist at the Laboratory for Atmospheric and Space Physics (LASP), leads the web and social media outreach for MAVEN and LASP. Tom shared information about MAVEN science, recent publications, online data, and social media. MAVEN educators discussed with each other how they are using these materials and what else they would like to have access to in the future.

NASA's MAVEN mission and Mars’ Climate Evolution for Educators

April 22, 2015 - MAVEN Educator Community of Practice webinar
Dr. Mehdi Benna is a planetary scientist at NASA Goddard Space Flight Center who models planetary magnetospheres and exospheres, and as an engineer helps to develop instruments for planetary spacecraft, including instruments for the MAVEN mission. Dr. Benna discussed how data from MAVEN are providing a picture of Mars’ atmospheric and climate evolution, including an update on MAVEN’s current findings.

Mars, the Sun, and NASA's MAVEN Mission for Educators

March 25, 2015 - MAVEN Educator Community of Practice webinar
Dr. Laura Peticolas presented on the overall MAVEN education program and showcased one demonstration created for the Invisible Mars project about isotopes and their importance to Mars’ atmosphere.

NASA | Observing Comet Siding Spring at Mars

Follow Comet Siding Spring at #MarsComet
On October 19, Comet Siding Spring will pass within 88,000 miles of Mars – just one third of the distance from the Earth to the Moon! Traveling at 33 miles per second and weighing as much as a small mountain, the comet hails from the outer fringes of our solar system, originating in a region of icy debris known as the Oort cloud.
Comets from the Oort cloud are both ancient and rare. Since this is Comet Siding Spring’s first trip through the inner solar system, scientists are excited to learn more about its composition and the effects of its gas and dust on the Mars upper atmosphere. NASA will be watching closely before, during, and after the flyby with its entire fleet of Mars orbiters and rovers, along with the Hubble Space Telescope and dozens of instruments on Earth. The encounter is certain to teach us more about Oort cloud comets, the Martian atmosphere, and the solar system’s earliest ingredients.
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The team of Nasa scientists working on the MAVEN spacecraft say its safe arrival at Mars is the result of 'years of very complex work'
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The Martian surface bears ample evidence of flowing water in its youth, from crater lakes and riverbeds to minerals that only form in water. But today Mars is cold and dry, and scientists think that the loss of Mars' water may have been caused by the loss of its early atmosphere. NASA's Mars Atmosphere and Volatile EvolutioN mission, or MAVEN, will be the first spacecraft devoted to studying the Red Planet's upper atmosphere, in an effort to understand how the Martian climate has changed over time.
To watch the MAVEN Mars Orbit Insertion live on Sunday, 9/21, starting at 9:30 pm EDT, visit:
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MAVEN's Journey to Mars

MAVEN has been under development since 2003, including concept development, formulation, and formal development for flight. The original proposal was submitted to NASA in 2006 and MAVEN was selected to move forward with production in 2008.
Processing and assembly of the spacecraft began at Lockheed Martin in Waterton Canyon, Colorado in August 2012, and, one year later, the spacecraft was shipped to NASA's Kennedy Space Center in preparation for its flawless launch in November 2013.
It has been a long journey and now, with the spacecraft about to enter Mars orbit on September 21, 2014, this compilation video explores some of the steps along the way. A lot of work goes into producing a spacecraft that is capable of withstanding the harsh conditions experienced during launch and the rigors of traveling for months, even years, through space.
Congratulations to the team that has brought MAVEN to the precipice of joining an amazing fleet of explorers at Mars and helping to solve the climate mystery of the Red Planet.
(Video credit: United Launch Alliance, Lockheed Martin, NASA's Kennedy Space Center)
(Video production: Tom Mason/CU-Boulder/LASP)
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NASA | Targeting Mars

For more information visit http://www.nasa.gov/content/goddard/nasas-maven-spacecraft-makes-final-preparations-for-mars
NASA's MAVEN spacecraft is quickly approaching Mars on a mission to study its upper atmosphere. When it arrives on September 21, 2014, MAVEN's winding journey from Earth will culminate with a dramatic engine burn, pulling the spacecraft into an elliptical orbit.
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MAVEN's Trajectory to Mars

This movie shows the cruise trajectory of NASA's Mars Atmosphere and Volatile Evolution (MAVEN) mission, which was launched on Nov. 18, 2013. It will arrive at Mars on Sept. 21, 2014, to explore the planet's upper atmosphere, ionosphere and interactions with the sun and solar wind. The range and speed of MAVEN with respect to Earth, Mars and the sun, both in metric (kilometers) and Imperial (miles) units, is displayed along with a date and the number of days until arrival at Mars. The sun-centered trajectory of MAVEN, shown in blue, takes 308 days to transit from Earth's orbit in green, to Mars' orbit in red. The movie updates at a rate of twice per day and shows the MAVEN spacecraft, Earth and Mars locations.
For more information about MAVEN:
http://www.nasa.gov/maven

MAVEN | Mars Atmospheric Loss: Sputtering

When you take a look at Mars, you probably wouldn't think that it looks like a nice place to live. It's dry, it's dusty, and there's practically no atmosphere. But some scientists think that Mars may have once looked like a much nicer place to live, with a thicker atmosphere, cloudy skies, and possibly even liquid water flowing over the surface.
NASA's MAVEN spacecraft will give us a clearer idea of how Mars lost its atmosphere, and scientists think that several processes have had an impact.
One way a planet can lose its atmosphere is through a process called "sputtering." In this process, atoms are knocked away from the atmosphere due to impacts from energetic particles.
(Video credit: NASA/GSFC)

NASA | MAVEN Pre-launch Science Briefing

On Sunday, Nov. 17, NASA conducted a MAVEN mission science briefing on NASA TV ahead of the spacecraft's successful launch aboard a United Launch Alliance Atlas V 401 rocket at 1:28 p.m. EST on Monday, Nov. 18.
MAVEN is the second mission for NASA's Mars Scout Program and will obtain critical measurements of the Martian upper atmosphere to help understand the climate change over the Red Planet's history and is the first spacecraft devoted to exploring and understanding the Martian upper atmosphere. It will orbit the planet in an elliptical orbit that allows it to pass through and sample the entire upper atmosphere on every orbit. The spacecraft will investigate how the loss of Mars' atmosphere to space determined the history of water on the surface.
The participants in the MAVEN science briefing were:
-Michael Meyer, lead Mars scientist NASA Headquarters, Washington
-Bruce Jakosky, MAVEN principal investigator Laboratory for Atmospheric and Space Physics, University of Colorado Boulder
-Janet Luhmann, MAVEN deputy principal investigator University of California at Berkeley
-Nick Schneider, MAVEN IUVS instrument lead Laboratory for Atmospheric and Space Physics, University of Colorado Boulder
-Paul Mahaffy, MAVEN NGIMS instrument lead NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, Md.
-David L. Mitchell, MAVEN SWEA instrument lead, University of California at Berkeley
(Video credit: NASA)

Complete MAVEN Launch Coverage from NASA TV

The MAVEN spacecraft successfully lifted off from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station's Space Launch Complex 41 aboard a United Launch Alliance Atlas V 401 rocket on Monday, November 18, 2013.
This NASA TV coverage of the MAVEN launch begins at about T-2 hours and ends with MAVEN spacecraft separation from the Centaur upper stage at 53 minutes into its flight.
The first spacecraft devoted to exploring and understanding the Martian upper atmosphere, MAVEN will take critical measurements to help scientists understand climate change over the Red Planet's history and how the loss of Mars' atmosphere to space determined the history of water on the surface.
(Video credit: NASA)

MAVEN launch—multiple angles

On November 18, 2013, at 1:28 p.m. (EST), the MAVEN spacecraft rocketed away from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station and Space Launch Complex 41 atop a United Launch Alliance Atlas V booster. The picture-perfect lift off was captured from a variety of angles adjacent to the launch pad and spread across NASA's Kennedy Space Center.
The launch began a 10-month journey to Mars for MAVEN, where it will enter orbit on September 22, 2014, and become the first mission devoted to understanding the processes involved in the evolution of the planet's upper atmosphere. Doing so will add a critical piece to the puzzle of Mars' climate history and help to answer the question of what happened to the once abundant water present on the ancient Martian surface and the denser atmosphere that made it possible.
(Video credit: NASA)

MAVEN Launch Highlights

An Atlas V rocket carrying NASA's Mars Atmosphere and Volatile EvolutioN (MAVEN) spacecraft lifts off from Space Launch Complex-41 on November 18, 2013.
MAVEN will examine specific processes on Mars that led to the loss of much of its atmosphere. Data and analysis will help planetary scientists understand the history of climate change on the Red Planet and provide further information on the history of planetary habitability.
Colorado-based United Launch Alliance (ULA) provided the Atlas V-401 launch vehicle for the MAVEN mission.
(Video credit: ULA)

MAVEN Separates from Centaur Upper Stage

Following liftoff at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station's Space Launch Complex 41, the MAVEN spacecraft separates from the Centaur upper stage as it begins a 10-month journey to explore the Red Planet's climate history.
(Video credit: NASA)

NASA scientist describes what satellite MAVEN will tell us about planets

NASA's MAVEN mission is scheduled to launch on Monday, November 18. In this WSF video, NASA scientist Michelle Thaller talks about what MAVEN could reveal about Mars' lost atmosphere and teach us about the life cycle of planets.
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Mars Bound MAVEN Probe Launches

NASA's Mars Atmosphere and Volatile Evolution (MAVEN), spacecraft launched from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station aboard a United Launch Alliance Atlas V 401 rocket Monday, Nov. 18.
MAVEN, the first spacecraft devoted to exploring and understanding the Martian upper atmosphere, will take critical measurements to help scientists understand climate change over the Red Planet's history and how the loss of Mars' atmosphere to space determined the history of water on the surface.

Liftoff of MAVEN on an Atlas V from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station

An Atlas V rocket lifts off at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station's Space Launch Complex 41. The Atlas V will send MAVEN on its 10-month journey to explore the Red Planet's climate history.
(Video credit: NASA/KSC)

The Science Behind NASA's Next Mars Mission

Segment: On Sunday, Nov. 17, a mission science briefing was broadcasted on NASA TV to discuss the Mars-bound spacecraft, the Mars Atmosphere and Volatile EvolutionN, or MAVEN, set to launch aboard a United Launch Alliance Atlas V 401 rocket Nov. 18. MAVEN is the second mission for NASA's Mars Scout Program and will obtain critical measurements of the Martian upper atmosphere to help understand the climate change over the Red Planet's history and is the first spacecraft devoted to exploring and understanding the Martian upper atmosphere. It will orbit the planet in an elliptical orbit that allows it to pass through and sample the entire upper atmosphere on every orbit. The spacecraft will investigate how the loss of Mars' atmosphere to space determined the history of water on the surface.
The participants in the mission science briefing were:
-Michael Meyer, lead Mars scientist NASA Headquarters, Washington
-Bruce Jakosky, MAVEN principal investigator Laboratory for Atmospheric and Space Physics, University of Colorado at Boulder
-Janet Luhmann, MAVEN deputy principal investigator University of California at Berkeley
-Nick Schneider, MAVEN IUVS instrument lead Laboratory for Atmospheric and Space Physics, University of Colorado at Boulder
-Paul Mahaffy, MAVEN NGIMS instrument lead NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, Md.
-David L. Mitchell, MAVEN SWEA instrument lead, University of California at Berkeley

MAVEN Rolls to the Launch Pad

The MAVEN spacecraft, mounted atop a United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket, rolls out from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station's Vertical Integration Facility to the pad at Space Launch Complex 41.
MAVEN remains on track to launch on November 18th at 1:28 p.m. EST on its journey to Mars, where it will be the first mission devoted to understanding the upper atmosphere of the Red Planet.
(Video credit: NASA/KSC)

NASA | MAVEN Mission to Mars

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Curiosity and MAVEN Explore Mars

This animation first shows Curiosity working to understand Mars as a past habitat, with a cut to MAVEN arriving at Mars to study the upper Martian atmosphere. Curiosity will not be able to "see" MAVEN on its arrival. Later in the mission, Curiosity may be able to view MAVEN when its orbit passes over Gale Crater at dusk, similar to viewing a low-earth-orbiting (LEO) satellite around Earth. As a precedent, Mars rover Spirit captured the Mars Odyssey orbiter as a bright point in the Martian sky. MAVEN is larger and flies lower, and Curiosity's cameras are better, so this animation imagines a similar sighting. The animation ends with a celebration of MAVEN, which will help in understanding Mars' climate history and uncovering when and how long Mars may have had an environment more favorable to microbial life than found today.
Credit: NASA/GSFC/JPL-Caltech

NASA | MAVEN: NASA's Next Mission to Mars

Ancient riverbeds, crater lakes and flood channels all attest to Mars's warm, watery past. So how did the Red Planet evolve from a once hospitable world into the cold, dry desert that we see today? One possibility is that Mars lost its early atmosphere, allowing its water to escape into space, and NASA's Mars Atmosphere and Volatile EvolutioN (MAVEN) spacecraft will investigate just that. On September 25, 2013, MAVEN Principal Investigator Bruce Jakosky delivered a presentation at the Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum, discussing NASA's next mission to Mars.
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NASA | Mars Atmosphere Loss: Sputtering

How did Mars, a once wet planet, lose its early atmosphere? One possibility is through a process called "sputtering," in which atoms are knocked away from the atmosphere due to impacts with energetic particles.
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MAVEN | Mars Atmospheric Loss: Plasma Processes

Mars's thick early atmosphere was likely lost to space, and the Sun is a potential culprit. When high-energy solar photons strike the upper Martian atmosphere they can ionize gas molecules, causing the atmosphere to erode over time.
(Video credit: NASA/GSFC)

NASA | Mars Atmosphere Loss: Plasma Processes

Mars's thick early atmosphere was likely lost to space, and the Sun is a potential culprit. When high-energy solar photons strike the upper Martian atmosphere they can ionize gas molecules, causing the atmosphere to erode over time.
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Watch the talented Reggie Watts perform at the Exploratorium August 9th, 2012. Reggie was at the Exploratorium for an Osher Fellowship, and he graciously joined us at the end of a live webcast on Mars to share a little of his own feelings about the red planet!

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